Govt to offload stakes in road, rail entities
Friday, 29 February 2008
The government is proposing to offload shares in three road and rail entities under the Communications Ministry, Finance Adviser AB Mirza Azizul Islam Thursday said, reports bdnews24.com.
"We have discussed offloading shares of Jamuna Bridge, Bangladesh Railway, and Bangladesh Road Transportation Corporation (BRTC)," the adviser told the reporters after a meeting at his office.
The government has yet to announce the percentage of shares to be offered in the three entities, but the adviser said, a committee had been formed to submit a report to the Finance Ministry in a month to finalise the decision.
Representatives of the Investment Corporation of Bangladesh, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bangladesh Bank and Bangladesh Bridge Authority (Jamuna Multipurpose Bridge Authority) would be on the committee, Azizul said. However, he did not clarify from what level officials the representatives would be picked.
SEC Chairman Faruk Ahmed told the meeting that offloading shares of BRTC, long facing losses, is not a good idea. "As the organisation has been facing losses, its shares won't make any impact in the market," he said.
The SEC boss asked the government to strengthen the BRTC's financial base to make it a profitable organisation.
Communications Adviser Ghulam Quader, Communications Secretary Mahbubur Rahman, Finance Ministry Acting Secretary Mohammad Tareque, and Bangladesh Bridge Authority Executive Director Md Ibrahim were among those present in the meeting.
"We have discussed offloading shares of Jamuna Bridge, Bangladesh Railway, and Bangladesh Road Transportation Corporation (BRTC)," the adviser told the reporters after a meeting at his office.
The government has yet to announce the percentage of shares to be offered in the three entities, but the adviser said, a committee had been formed to submit a report to the Finance Ministry in a month to finalise the decision.
Representatives of the Investment Corporation of Bangladesh, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bangladesh Bank and Bangladesh Bridge Authority (Jamuna Multipurpose Bridge Authority) would be on the committee, Azizul said. However, he did not clarify from what level officials the representatives would be picked.
SEC Chairman Faruk Ahmed told the meeting that offloading shares of BRTC, long facing losses, is not a good idea. "As the organisation has been facing losses, its shares won't make any impact in the market," he said.
The SEC boss asked the government to strengthen the BRTC's financial base to make it a profitable organisation.
Communications Adviser Ghulam Quader, Communications Secretary Mahbubur Rahman, Finance Ministry Acting Secretary Mohammad Tareque, and Bangladesh Bridge Authority Executive Director Md Ibrahim were among those present in the meeting.